Knowledge Portal

This review reflects on several questions and looks at means of improving smallholder inclusiveness in palm oil production. Palm oil is a commodity that causes controversy due to its impacts on smallholder livelihoods, local communities, biodiversity, land productivity and climate change. »

This research report presents results of a search for policies and conditions that can help accelerate agricultural development in Africa. This development has been limited in many countries, as evinced by extreme low fertilizer use, low crop yields, poverty and high food insecurity. A hopeful tendency emerges from this study: African agricultural development is taking off in response to population growth, as is shown by the cereal yield and fertilizer use adoption trends in many countries. »

This info note assesses whether SSA can be self-sufficient in cereals by 2050 under different scenarios of intensification on existing cereal area. Intensification of cereal production with sufficient and efficient use of fertilizers will lead to lowest GHG emissions, but requires excellent agronomy, including the use of well-adapted cultivars, proper planting densities, good nutrient management and crop protection »

This study quantifies the water and land footprints of current livestock production systems in three agro-ecological zones in Kenya that contrast strongly in terms of land availability and rainfall. Across the three agroecological zones, improving breeds, feed provisioning and milk production per cow may achieve production intensification but concurrently exacerbates resource limitation. Consequently, the heterogeneity inherent in resource availability across dairy production zones should be considered when developing strategies for increasing dairy production. »

This article examines the role of animal sourced foods (ASF) in stunting prevention and the effectiveness of programmes aiming to increase ASF consumption. A study across 46 countries find different patterns of consumption between regions and countries. Costs showed to be the biggest barrier of ASF consumption. »

This report analyzes the changing landscape of rural agricultural finance. With the changes comes an urgent need to develop improved frameworks for understanding the state of the sector. To do so, the authors introduce new models for understanding how rural clients, financial service providers, and the capital markets can effectively work together. »